CW Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in OPENLANE, Inc. $KAR

Key Points

• CW Advisors LLC has invested approximately $490,000 in OPENLANE, acquiring 25,401 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• OPENLANE, Inc. reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.33, surpassing analysts' expectations and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 11.6%.
• Several institutional investors, including Burgundy Asset Management and Invesco Ltd., have increased their stakes in OPENLANE, which is now predominantly owned by institutions at 99.76%.

CW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in OPENLANE, Inc. (NYSE:KAR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 25,401 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $490,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KAR. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of OPENLANE by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 63,970 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 3,799 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in OPENLANE by 197.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 219,411 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,353,000 after acquiring an additional 145,673 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in OPENLANE by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 65,486 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,299,000 after acquiring an additional 3,600 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in OPENLANE by 404.7% during the fourth quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 19,177 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 15,377 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in OPENLANE by 414.6% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,182 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,758 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.76% of the company's stock.

OPENLANE Trading Down 0.1%

KAR stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $28.87. 864,757 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 922,513. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of 39.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.40. OPENLANE, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.44 and a 1-year high of $29.37.

OPENLANE (NYSE:KAR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The specialty retailer reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.09. OPENLANE had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 8.18%.The business had revenue of $481.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $453.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.19 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that OPENLANE, Inc. will post 0.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at OPENLANE

In other news, EVP James P. Coyle sold 194,575 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.94, for a total value of $5,436,425.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 36,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,616.94. This trade represents a 84.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles S. Coleman sold 59,289 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.97, for a total value of $1,658,313.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 53,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,495,667.78. The trade was a 52.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on KAR. Wall Street Zen raised OPENLANE from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on OPENLANE from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Barrington Research increased their price target on OPENLANE from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on OPENLANE from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, OPENLANE has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.50.

OPENLANE Company Profile

OPENLANE, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital marketplace for used vehicles, which connects sellers and buyers in North America, Europe, the Philippines, and Uruguay. The company operates through two segments, Marketplace and Finance. The Marketplace segment offers digital marketplace services for buying and selling used vehicles.